Monday, July 18, 2011

In less than two weeks, Wilderness Volunteers heads to "Wild and Wonderful" West Virginia for our first ever service trip in "The Mountain State." That's right: WV in WV!

We'll spend the week ditchin' and turnpikin' - that's trail slang for cleaning up soggy, washed out trail - in the Cranberry Wilderness, which some have called "the crown jewel" of the 919,000-acre Monongahela National Forest. Home to scenic red spruce, rhododendron groves, and mossy, fern-covered forest floors, the wilderness is a designated black-bear sanctuary and boasts some of the best trout fishing in the east.

We've got a good project, a good hike, good meals, and a good group - all key ingredients for a successful trip. One could say "It's Almost Heaven..."

Our Mission is stewardship of America's wild lands through organizing and promoting volunteer service in cooperation with public land agencies including the National Park Service, the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Wilderness Volunteers is proud to be supported by a Matching Grant from the National Forest Foundation. Founded by Congress in 1991, The National Forest Foundation works to conserve, restore and enhance America's 193-million-acre National Forest System. Through community-based strategies and public partnerships, the NFF helps enhance wildlife habitat, revitalizes wildfire-damaged landscapes, restores watersheds, and improves recreational resources for the benefit of all Americans.